


Curiously Odd, Strangely Attracted

by CitySushiPlace



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-09-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:54:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24154624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CitySushiPlace/pseuds/CitySushiPlace
Summary: Naruto and Sasuke are roommates.They need to make money so they rent their spare room to a traveler.Hinata is that traveler.Want to know the rest? Come and see!
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata/Uchiha Sasuke
Comments: 21
Kudos: 68





	1. Sasuke is not a fan of women

“Sasuke!” Naruto called his best friends name loudly, taking a bite of an apple after he spoke.

Sasuke’s room door opened, and he walked over to the kitchen table.

Naruto was sitting at the head of the table, red apple in one hand, a newspaper in the other. Naruto turned to look over his shoulder at Sasuke, and he gestured the Uchiha to check out what was in his hand.

Naruto used his hand with the apple in it to point to the tabloid he wanted Sasuke to read, “check it out, they finally put our ad in the paper”

Sasuke pulled the paper out of Naruto’s hand, and he let him, taking another bite of his apple and leaning back on the chair.

‘ROOMMATE WANTED: $250, INCLUDES UTILITIES. IF INTERESTED CALL NARUTO AT 857-5555’

“Hn. You got any calls?” Sasuke asked him as he set the magazine down on the counter. He walked to the fridge and grabbed the gallon of milk.

He didn’t bother looking at the box of cereal he grabbed since he knew there was only one, corn flakes.

He grabbed two bowls out of the dish rack and two spoons, sitting down at the table with Naruto as he handed him a bowl and spoon.

“Just one” Naruto said as he poured himself cereal to the brim, topping it off with milk.

Naruto shoveled a spoonful in his mouth as he talked with a mouthful of cereal, “some girl” his speech was slightly impaired, but Sasuke still understood the words clearly.

“A girl?” Sasuke asked, face as caring as a stone as he ate his corn flakes.

“Yea. Her name’s Hinata. She might be coming by today to check out the place.” Naruto said, finishing the last of his cereal and pouring himself another bowl.

“We better clear out the other room, then” Sasuke said matter of factly, they both dreaded that room. It was piled up with a bunch of boxes that both didn’t want to bother with.

Naruto shrugged, “I gotta work today.”

Sasuke observed Naruto’s work attire, he wasn’t kidding.

His name tag, unevenly clipped on his shirt reflected the kitchen light, and his blue vest was put over a plain white t-shirt.

“What do they have you doing today?” Sasuke asked, taking a bite of corn flakes.

“Cash register. I got the eight-hour shift” Naruto said begrudgingly as he rubbed his face.

“They have you working today, Teme?” Naruto asked curiously, hands behind his head now.

“Yea.” Sasuke said, taking another bite of corn flakes.

“Stocking in the back?” Naruto asked, even though the answer was obvious. The grocery store had Sasuke stocking most of the time.

Sasuke nodded. “We’ll probably get off around the same time.”

Naruto got up from his seat and headed to the bathroom, “cool, then one of us will be here when she comes by to check out the place.”

Sasuke hoped it wouldn’t be him.

...

Sasuke looked at his clock out card, 12:00 p.m. to 7:05 p.m.

He was hoping to get the full eight hours, but he had finished all his work for the day.

Sasuke made a point to stop by the cash register to see if Naruto was done also.

“Hey, Sasuke, are you leaving already?” The pink haired siren asked him, Sasuke refrained from saying something sarcastic.

“Yea.” He simply said.

“What’re your plans for tonight?? I get off here in an hour, I was wondering if you wanted to watch a mov-”

“Sorry, not interested.” Sasuke interrupted her before she continued to ramble on any longer, like always.

“I’m free tonight, I can go to the movies with you Sakura-Chan” Naruto pipped into the conversation, a hopeful gleam in his eyes.

Sakura scoffed, pulling a short strand of pink hair behind her ear. “Yea. Right.” She said rudely.

Naruto’s eyes lowered in disappointment, and Sasuke had a look of disgust he was hoping Sakura would see. Sasuke left his response to her comment at that, and looked over to his blond haired friend.

“You off, yet?” Sasuke asked, and Naruto sighed, “nah, someone called in and they want me to stay an extra hour ‘till they find someone to cover his shift. I’ll be home after, though”

Sasuke glared at him, Naruto knowing fully well that Sasuke did _not_ want to be home alone if this woman was coming.

Naruto shrugged, “I’m sorry Teme, there’s nothing I can do. She sounded like a nice girl over the phone, it shouldn’t be too bad. Don’t be too hard on her, at least treat her decent until I get home, ok?” Naruto had sincerity in his voice, trying to ease his friend’s anxiety.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, it didn’t matter if she was the queen of England, he didn’t want anything to do with her. He despised women, no matter their personality traits.

“See you in a bit, Teme” Naruto waved to him slightly, he had to cut the conversation short since he had to deal with a customer.

Sasuke dragged his feet outside to his silver car, hoping in all his power he got stuck in traffic and Naruto would be home before him.

However, even though he took the long way home, he somehow was able to get every green light and not a single traffic lane. Just his luck.

He sighed and locked the doors to his car, he heard a loud rumble coming from the sky. He looked up and saw the rain clouds, a sprinkle was barely covering the surface of the ground and the top of his car. He didn’t bother hurrying to open the door to the first floor of their apartment complex, he didn’t mind a little rain on him. He ascended the flight of stairs to the second floor, and walked about two doors down until he stood in front of door number 47, and found the key to the door to their apartment.

The door creaked as he opened it, and he promptly shut it behind him. Regardless of him having to wait for her, he was relieved to be home from work.

He took off his shoes and placed them neatly by the front door, and he decided to make himself something to eat while he waited.

He grabbed the tea pot and filled it with water, turning on the burner to get some boiling water going. He looked in the cabinet and grabbed a pack of instant ramen, and looked for a dish to put it in. There was one clean bowl, and a fork. The spoons and chopsticks were all dirty, and he was too lazy to wash dishes, so he settled with the fork.

The teapot took a few minutes to boil, and once it did it made a hissing sound with steam coming from the spout. He took it off the burner and poured the hot water over the noodles, letting them soak for a bit as he went to change out of his work clothes.

He rummaged through his clothes and found a pair of black sweatpants and a navy-blue T-shirt, which was good enough for him. He changed and went back to get his ramen.

Sasuke stared out the small kitchen window as he ate his ramen with a fork, it was pitch black outside, the only reason he could tell it was still raining was from the rain drops banging against the window. It was no wonder to him that it was raining in late October, it usually started snowing early November, so the weather was gearing up for that.

He wondered if Naruto was getting off work already. He wondered if he should stay up and wait for this girl, or go to sleep. He pondered if she was even coming at all, considering the rain and how late it was already.

Knock.

  
Knock.

  
Knock.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!
> 
> I’m back again with another long fic lol. I was going through my notes and found this piece in there that I hadn’t uploaded yet, so I thought I should just in case it gets lost somehow.
> 
> This fic will be a lot different from my other ones. Think of it like a chick flick, but instead it’s a fic. Chick fic?! Lol!
> 
> By the way, if the title seems like it’s worded weird or it doesn’t really make sense, don’t worry, I did it on purpose lol. It’s because one time I looked up Leo (Sasuke) and Hinata (Capricorn) love compatibility and it said they would be an odd couple, but instantly attracted to each other. Thus, the title was born!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all have fun reading it!
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> CitySushiPlace


	2. Same place, same job space

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

Sasuke turned to face the door, of course she would come while he was eating.

He sighed irritably and arose from his chair to go open the front door.

He opened the door, just to be greeted by a familiar face.

“Sorry Teme, I forgot my keys again” Naruto chuckled slightly at himself and ran his hand through his hair, splatting water every where.

Sasuke held up his arm as a shield, and said in disgust, “you’re not a dog, idiot”

Naruto went even harder, spreading more water droplets around.

“I should kick your ass” Sasuke said irritably, and Naruto just laughed.

Naruto sniffed the air, and rubbed his stomach. “You made ramen without me?!” Naruto kicked off his muddy boots, his shoes sprawled across the living room as he hurried to the stove to make himself a bowl of ramen.

Sasuke sighed as he placed the shoes neatly by the front door, “you’re not a pig either” Sasuke said, and Naruto scoffed, “sorry, dad” he mocked Sasuke, and Sasuke just rolled his eyes.

“Hey! Where are all the bowls?!” Naruto held his hands out in shock, and Sasuke responded sarcastically, “in the sink, where you left them.”

Naruto groaned and threw a fit like a toddler would if they had their toy taken away.

“Hurry up and eat so I can use your bowl. I’m too tired to wash dishes” Naruto said, and Sasuke shrugged.

“You’ll have to wait then.” Sasuke said as he took his sweet time eating, and Naruto sighed loudly. “Fine!” Naruto quickly washed one bowl and one pair of chopsticks, then he made himself a ramen.

The two of them sat on the kitchen table, quietly eating instant ramen together, their usual delicacy.

By the time they had finished eating and Naruto changed into his pajamas, it was already 10 o’ clock at night.

“You think she’s coming, Teme?” Naruto asked Sasuke the question that had been in the back of both of their minds.

Sasuke paused, then shook his head. “No. It’s too late.” He nodded towards the kitchen window, “and it’s raining. She’ll be here tomorrow morning.” Sasuke predicted as he walked towards his bedroom. “I’m going to bed. Night.” He told Naruto as he opened the door to his room, and shut it behind him. He didn’t realize how truly tired he was until he got under the covers, and from there he crashed out.

...

“SASUKE!”

He jolted awake from the screaming of his name, he quickly walked to his bedroom door and opened it.

Sasuke looked around to make sure nothing was wrong, and realizing that it wasn’t urgent, replied, “what, Naruto?!”

“Could you get the door?! I’m taking a crap” Naruto said from behind the bathroom door, and Sasuke sighed as he rubbed his fatigued eyes.

He glanced at the clock in the kitchen as he walked to the front door, 1 am? Could she really be coming by this late?

He opened the door, and blinked as his tired eyes adjusted to see the person in front of him.

A girl, of course, with a suitcase and a big raincoat on.

“H-Hello, are you Naruto Uzumaki?” The girl asked politely, removing her hood to reveal her midnight blue hair.

“No.” Sasuke said groggily.

“Oh, ok, then you must be the other roommate Naruto-kun talked about, Sasuke Uchiha, right?” She grinned, “my name is Hinata Hyuga. It’s nice to meet you”

Sasuke said nothing, just stared absentmindedly at her.

“I’m sorry to bother you so late, Uchiha-San, but I just arrived into town and Naruto-kun had told me to just come and knock whenever I got here, so I did just that..I’m so sorry if I woke you” She bowed her head in apology, and Sasuke realized that he was way too tired to deal with all of this.

“Just come in, and close the door behind you. Naruto will be out in a minute.” He said this as he turned his back to her, walking back to his room and secluding himself in there.

Naruto came out of the bathroom as soon as Sasuke left her alone in the living room, “hey, Hinata” Sasuke tried not to listen to their conversation, but the walls were paper thin in their apartment.

“H-Hello, Naruto-kun! It’s nice to finally meet you”

“Yea, you too! So we don’t have the room ready for you yet, but if it’s ok with you we have the couch in the living room you can sleep on. It’s pretty comfortable”

“Oh, that’s perfectly fine, thank you! I know it was short notice of me moving in, I-I just didn’t realize I would be moving so soon.”

“Nah, it’s fine, don’t even worry about it.”

“I-I’m sorry if I bothered you two so late, Uchiha-San seemed angry, I hope I didn’t upset him too much..”

“Sasuke?? Ah, don’t worry about him, he’s always angry at something. It’s not your fault.” Naruto laughed at this, and so did that girl.

Sasuke frowned, ‘really, Naruto?’ He thought inwardly, ‘it’s her fault I’m upset. She comes here late, wakes me up, and now I have to deal with you two talking.’

He sighed and put a pillow over his ear, trying to muffle them out so he could get some rest.

...

Sasuke woke up the next morning not very well rested. He rubbed his eyes, knowing that her interrupting his sleep is what disturbed him.

He got up out of bed, and opened the door to go use the restroom.

He went to go use the restroom down the hall, looking nowhere else but the way to the bathroom. He lifted up the toilet seat to do his business, he yawned as he looked down at the toilet bowl to aim.

He frowned, something looked different. The toilet bowl was sparkling clean, vastly different from the stained bowl he was used to. He looked around the rest of the bathroom, the shower was clean, the sink, the mirror, even the bathroom floors were swept and the rugs neatly placed.

He flushed the toilet and washed his hands, noticing that there was a towel for drying your hands on. Sasuke knew it was that girl who had cleaned the bathroom, but what shocked him the most about their clean bathroom was the fact that there was a towel. Where in the world did she find a hand towel? He didn’t even know they owned one.

Sasuke opened the door to the bathroom and he instantly caught a whiff of some...bacon?

He curiously looked over to the kitchen, and he noticed that girl there, hovering over the stove.

She turned when she heard the sound of the bathroom door shut, and she smiled warmly. “Goodmorning, Uchiha-San”

Sasuke blinked, and muttered a simple, “hey.”

“I-I couldn’t sleep last night. I didn’t know if you two were hungry, I wanted to make you both some breakfast but I noticed there wasn’t really anything in the fridge. So I went to the grocery store down the street and bought some bacon and eggs, do you like bacon and eggs, Uchiha-San?” She multi-tasked, glancing over to talk to him while cooking the bacon.

Sasuke cleared his throat, “yea” he responded.

His mouth salivated at the thought of eating bacon, he hadn’t had a decent breakfast in a few months. Being two single guys living together, cooking wasn’t really their specialty, nor did they care to learn.

He wanted to be prideful and deny her breakfast offering, but he really just couldn’t resist.

Sasuke glanced down at the sink, noticing that all the dishes had been washed. And the kitchen, it looked, so neat and clean.

He wondered if she had spent all night cleaning. He didn’t ask, and he was too prideful to thank her. But, inside his mind, he was thanking her.

Naruto emerged from his bedroom, walking over to the stove like a dog waiting for his meal.

“Is that, BACON?!” Naruto said, a huge smile emerged on his face.

Hinata smiled and blushed, laughing at his reaction, “y-yes! Goodmorning, Naruto-kun”

Naruto practically had drool running down his mouth, but he snapped out of his bacon trance and acknowledged her.

“Goodmorning, Hinata-Chan.” He looked at the kitchen, and held his hands out. “Wow! Did you clean the kitchen?! It looks so good!” Naruto praised her work, and Sasuke inwardly agreed with Naruto’s statement, even if he said nothing.

Hinata blushed again, and nodded, “y-yes, thank you for noticing”

Naruto sat on the kitchen table, putting his hand to the new flower pot that was in the center of the table. Sasuke also sat down, across from him.

Hinata prepared three plates for them, and set them down in front of each of them, giving them utensils.

“Thanks, Hinata-Chan. You’re the greatest” Naruto said as he happily devoured his breakfast.

Sasuke said nothing, but also devoured his meal.

Hinata had barely sat down to eat her meal when she noticed that both of their plates were cleaned. She looked in shock at both of them, “w-wow, you both finished your food so quick!”

Naruto nodded, “we haven’t had a home cooked breakfast in forever!”

“Ah, I see” Hinata got up and grabbed both their plates, “let me get you two some more”

She served them both some more, and they both took their time eating this time, giving her some time to eat her own food.

Hinata took a bite of her bacon and gulped it down and took a drink of water. “S-So I wanted to talk to you two about something...”, she said, nervousness in her voice.

Two pairs of eyes were on her, and Naruto responded, “sure. Whaddya wanna talk about?” He took another bite of his eggs.

“W-Well, it’s just, uhm..”, she sighed, gaining her composure, “well you see...since I just got into town last night, and I don’t know this place very well, I-I don’t have a job right now..so I won’t be able to pay for my stay until I find one..”, she looked down at the table solemnly, but she perked up at a thought she had, then said, “b-but I can cook and clean as payment while I look for a job, don’t worry I won’t be a burden, I-I promise”

Naruto raised his finger to the sky in a sort of eureka moment, “don’t even worry about that, Hinata-Chan, you can come work with us!” He smiled, and Sasuke had a look of putrid horror in his eyes as he glared at Naruto.

Hinata didn’t notice this though, she was busy looking at Naruto, “y-you really mean that, Naruto-kun?”

“Yea, of course! Come with us to work today and I’ll have them start you off as a cashier. They’re looking for one, so it works out perfect!” Naruto grinned, and Hinata blushed.

“Wow, thank you so much, Naruto-Kun!” Hinata bowed her head.

Naruto shot Sasuke a glance, which he noticed his penetrating glare. Naruto shrugged, sending Sasuke a look of, ‘what else could I do?’

Naruto knew fully well Sasuke would be furious at the fact that not only would he have to live with this girl, now he would have to work with her. He’d basically be seeing her every day, with no escape.

Sasuke got up off his seat, and walked to his room, shutting the door behind him.

Hinata looked up from her bow, and turned to the shut door of Sasuke’s room. She turned back to look at Naruto, “i-is everything ok? Did I say something wrong?” She asked worriedly, and Naruto shook his head. “Nah, he just remembered that he had to get ready for work. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Naruto wasn’t sure if Sasuke was really getting ready for work, he just had to come up with something so she wouldn’t feel offended.

“O-Oh..ok” Hinata nodded, “well, I’m going to get ready to go with you to work, then. What time do you go in?”

Naruto turned to look at the clock on the wall, and almost jumped out of his seat. “Damn! In 30 minutes!” Naruto hurried to his room to get changed, and Hinata took some clothes out of her suitcase and got ready in the bathroom.

Strangely enough, Sasuke was also getting ready for work, they both worked at noon that day without the other even knowing.

Sasuke waited for Hinata to get out of the bathroom so he could quickly brush his teeth, then he put on his shoes and headed out the door. Naruto and Hinata were seconds behind him, Naruto offered her a ride to his job, and she accepted, since she didn’t have a car.

Sasuke was just opening the door to his car when he heard Naruto cussing in the distance.

“TEME!” Naruto yelled to him, and Sasuke already knew what had happened.

Naruto and Hinata walked up to Sasuke’s car, “my cars acting up again, could you give me and Hinata a ride to work?”

Sasuke didn’t even look up at them when he responded, “get in.”

Naruto pulled the seat back for Hinata to hop in the back, and Naruto got in the passenger side.

“Sorry, Hinata-Chan. My car acts up sometimes, damn thing doesn’t want to start half the time.” Naruto laughed and scratched the back of his head, and Hinata smiled and shook her head. “It’s fine, Naruto-Kun. I’m sorry I have to trouble you two for a ride, I’m hoping once I start working I can save enough money to get a car”

Sasuke glanced at her briefly through his rear-view mirror, he wanted to converse with her on the best used car dealerships in the city, but he didn’t. He looked away quickly, luckily, she wasn’t paying any attention to him as her eyes were fixated at objects outside the window.

“I-It’s probably going to rain again, don’t you think?” Hinata asked, trying to cut the silence that fell on the three of them.

Sasuke glanced out the windshield and looked at the clouds in the sky, it definitely seemed like it was going to rain. Did he respond to her question, though? Nope.

Naruto shrugged, “I dunno, let’s find out”, he turned on the radio and turned it to the weather channel, “heavy rain showers expected tonight with a low of 73. More rain expected throughout the week, the weather’s starting to get colder for the coming winter-” Naruto turned off the radio, and looked back at her, “you’re right, how could you tell it was going to rain??” Naruto asked curiously, and Sasuke responded, “look at the clouds, idiot.”

Naruto grimaced, “eh, shut up, Teme.”

Hinata observed the interaction of these two men, she wondered if this was the way they always were with each other. Well, now that she lived with them, she would know soon enough.

They pulled up to the grocery store, and Naruto announced, “here we are! Your new job, and mine and Sasuke’s old one haha” Naruto got out of the car and lifted the seat for her to get out.

“You work here too, Uchiha-San?” Hinata asked politely as the three of them walked to the grocery store entrance.

Sasuke glanced at her and nodded slightly.

“Wow, I guess it’s sort of convenient that we’ll all be working at the same place” Hinata said light heartedly, and inwardly Sasuke thought, ‘convenient for you, cumbersome for me.’

“Hang on a sec while I grab the boss, Hinata-Chan” Naruto walked quickly to the back office to grab the manager, leaving Sasuke and Hinata standing at the front entrance together.

Hinata fidgeted with her feet, looking down at the floor. Sasuke glanced at her, hands in his pockets. It was blatantly obvious that she was nervous. He understood though. New town, new home, new job, new people. He sighed, rubbing the back of his hair. It was bothersome to have to help her feel more comfortable in this new environment, but he also didn’t want to just leave her standing there alone.

Sasuke started walking away, and he turned to look back at her. She stood there, trying to seem like she had everything under control, but he could tell by the way she was fidgeting that she was nervously thinking that he was leaving her there by herself. “Come on” Sasuke said blandly, “the manager’s office is this way”

Hinata grinned and nodded, standing up a little taller, “r-right!” She followed behind him, walking to the back where the manager’s office was.

Sasuke knocked on the door with the gold plate in the high center labeled, ‘manager’

Naruto opened it, and the manager got up from his chair to greet Hinata.

He shook her hand, “hello, you must be Hinata” the man smiled behind a blue mask, “my name is Kakashi Hatake”

Hinata smiled, “hello, nice to meet you Kakashi-Sensei”

“Please, just Kakashi is fine. Have a seat, I’ll get you started with orientation and get your uniform. You fine with starting today?”

Hinata nodded, her eyes full of excitement and relief, “yes, Kakashi-Se- uhm, Kakashi”

Kakashi waved to Sasuke, “how you doing, Sasuke?” He smiled, and Sasuke responded, “I’m here, does that answer your question?”

Kakashi scratched his cheek and chuckled awkwardly, “ah, Sasuke.” He shook his head, “hope you have a good shift”

Sasuke did a small half wave with his hand, and walked out of the room to go clock in.

Naruto waved at Kakashi and Hinata, “thanks Kakashi. I’ll see you on the floor, Hinata-Chan” Naruto grinned, and both Kakashi and Hinata waved back. “Thank you, Naruto-kun” Hinata blushed slightly. “Sure, anytime!” Naruto beamed a grin in her direction, and then promptly shut the door behind him.

Kakashi smiled, and looked at Hinata, “Naruto is a good person. Sasuke is too, but, he’s...” Kakashi rubbed his mask where Hinata assumed his chin would be, he thought for a moment, humming as he did. “Sasuke is a good person inside, he just has a unique way of expressing himself. I hope you don’t take offense to the way he acts sometimes.”

Hinata shook her head, “n-no, I don’t, it’s just, difficult to understand him. But he seems like a good person”

“Well, we better get on with the orientation so you can get started” Kakashi smiled through his mask, “what’s your full name?”

“Hinata Hyuga” Hinata responded, and Kakashi said, “ah ha. I knew I recognized those eyes from somewhere”

Hinata blushed a pinkish hue, “y-yes, our eyes are definitely a trademark of our family”

“That’s right” Kakashi observed her moon like eyes, and commented, “you’re a long way from home, aren’t you? Usually the Hyuga family stay mostly in the North”

“Ah, yes” Hinata looked away, and thought twice before she responded. “I-I wanted to attend the University here, I’ve always heard such great things about it.”

Kakashi nodded, “yes, many young people like you come here to go to school. Well, I’m glad you can join us”

Hinata nodded, relieved he had bought her story, but didn’t show it. “I’m glad to be here also” she grinned.


	3. I have a question for you

He took down more information, her birth-date, social security number, her address, and a phone number to reach her by. He took down her uniform size as well, and grabbed her a uniform from the utility closet in the office.

And, just like that, she was on the floor, working at the cash register, being trained by Naruto.

Sasuke finished his shift, another day he would be getting off early for finishing everything that needed to be done.

He walked to the cash register, seeing what time those two would be getting off so he could go home.

Sasuke observed Hinata and Naruto conversing, Naruto cracking a few jokes while he trained Hinata, and Hinata who was laughing and blushing madly.

“Hey” Sasuke said, catching both of their attention. “You guys ready?” Sasuke had his hands in his pockets, waiting for their reply.

“Hey, Sasuke!” Naruto ran over to him and pulled him aside so no one could hear them.

Naruto put an arm around Sasuke’s shoulder, and Sasuke was uncomfortable with the close contact but he dealt with it.

“So, I get off in an hour, but...” Naruto glanced back, looking at Sakura, then turning back to him, “Sakura asked if I needed a ride home! Can you believe it?! This could finally be my chance...” Naruto’s eyes beamed with hope, and Sasuke couldn’t help the shadow of gloom that fell over him.

Great. Good for Naruto he gets to ride home with his crush. Bad for him that he must ride home, _alone_ , with their new roommate.

“She’s never asked you before” Sasuke replied, “why’d she ask you now?”

Naruto shook his head, “that’s what’s confusing me too. You think maybe it’s because I’ve been talking to Hinata a lot?” Naruto said curiously, “Sakura kept looking at me when I was training her…maybe that’s it”

Sasuke sighed, “I’m not a love expert. Just do what you got to do.” He walked away from Naruto’s arm over the shoulder, and Naruto replied, “thanks for the talk, Sasuke”

Sasuke walked over to Hinata, and he nodded his head towards the entrance of the grocery store. “Come on, let’s go.” He said blandly.

Hinata nodded, “o-ok, just let me clock out very fast, Uchiha-San”, she hurried to the back to go clock out, and Sasuke turned and made eye contact with Sakura, someone he really didn’t want to deal with at the moment.

“So, she lives with you guys?” Sakura asked, a hint of jealousy in her voice that frankly disgusted him.

“Yea.” He said, wishing he would’ve said, ‘none of your damn business’ but he didn’t want to deal with a crying girl right now.

“Oh...” Sakura said, then she looked away, “so you’re giving her a ride home?”

“It appears that way.” Sasuke couldn’t control his sarcasm sometimes.

“Oh…ok” Sakura said again, and looked away in disappointment.

Hinata came back grinning, “I’m ready, Uchiha-San”, she said, and waved goodbye to Sakura. “It was nice meeting you, Sakura-Chan” Hinata smiled politely, and Sakura smiled and waved back, “bye Hinata, it was nice meeting you too.”

Hinata waved to Naruto, and blushed slightly, “bye Naruto-kun, I’ll see you later”

Naruto waved, grinning. “Bye Hinata-Chan! Bye Sasuke-Teme! Drive safe, you guys!”

Sakura blushed and waved to Sasuke, “bye, Sasuke-kun”

Sasuke was already walking away, and he threw his hand up in the air and gestured a goodbye. Hinata followed quickly behind him, trying to catch up.

He opened the door to the grocery store and the rain was pouring vigorously, he walked in the rain, hands in his pockets, uncaring of his hair getting wet.

Hinata, however, put her hoodie over her head and zipped up her jacket all the way, walking briskly with hands in her pocket.

They made it to his car, and she quickly hopped in the passenger side, Sasuke getting in shortly after.

“Ah, not only is it raining, it’s also pretty cold, too”, she said as she removed her hoodie and exposed her hair. She adjusted her bangs as best she could, but they were slightly damp from the rain.

Sasuke put the keys in the ignition and turned on the heater to the car, even though he wasn’t that cold, she mentioned that she was.

“Thank you, Uchiha-San”, she had noticed. The car was starting to heat up quickly, and she took off her jacket.

For a while, the drive was silent. Hinata stared out the window, watching the rain pour from the now dark skies. Sasuke just drove, staring at the road mindlessly as his windshield wipers did their job wiping the rain droplets off.

“Uchiha-San, may I ask you a question?” Hinata asked, glancing over at him.

“Hm?” He responded, yet his eyes were still on the road.

“Well...I was wondering, how long have you and Naruto-kun known each other?”

He thought about it briefly, then responded, “since we were thirteen, so about eight years already.”

“Wow, that’s a long time.” Hinata continued, “you two must be really good friends”

Sasuke was quiet, but Hinata assumed the answer was a yes.

“How long have you two been living together?”

Sasuke thought once more, then replied, “about three years.”

“I-If you don’t mind me asking, why did you two put an ad for a roommate if you’ve been living like this for so long?”

“We had an extra room that’s just been for storage, we decided that if we rented it out, we’d be spending less on bills every month.”

Hinata nodded, “oh, I see. It’s beneficial for all three of us then. You two pay less on bills, and I have a place to stay.”

Sasuke looked at her briefly, then turned back to the road, “what brought you here?” He asked bluntly.

Hinata was taken aback, “e-excuse me, Uchiha-San?”

“What brought you here to this town?” He glanced over at her again, “your eyes aren’t from here, they’re Hyuga clan. The Hyuga’s are strictly from the North. And, usually they refuse to let anyone leave the North...so I’ve heard.”

Sasuke watched her and kept his eye on the road at the same time, his suspicions were unfurling.

Hinata was silent, staring at the floorboard of his car.

“I’ve answered your questions, so you answer mine.” He continued, “why are you here, Hyuga?”

The car was dead silent, Sasuke waiting for her reply and her being the one to respond.

After a long time, Hinata spoke, “I don’t believe I trust you enough to tell you the truth of why I’m here, Uchiha-San.” She sighed, “maybe someday I will talk about it. But for now, just consider me as someone who just needs a place to live, far away from the Hyuga clan. That’s all.”

Sasuke paused, he didn’t want to prod any further, he loathed when people would disrespect his privacy. He didn’t want to do that to someone else.

“Ok.” He said, his response was possibly the most respectful way he’s conversed with her since she’d been there.

“T-Thank you, Uchiha-San.” Hinata bowed, and Sasuke rolled his eyes.

“Why do you do that so much?” He asked, and she frowned, “do what?”

“Why are you so damn respectful with me all the time?” He said, frowning.

“U-Uhm…well I mean...I don’t want to be rude, so…do you want me to treat you disrespectfully?” Hinata asked, brows furrowed and her expression extremely confused.

Sasuke parked into the driveway of their apartment complex, he still had the car running as he spoke to her, “you’re bowing, calling me by my last name, acting like I’m someone who gives a damn about all that.”

Hinata, eyes wide and still confused, just nodded slightly, “uhm...ok”

He turned off the car and turned to observe her facial expression, then sighed, rubbing his eyes in slight irritation. Not with her, just with the fact that he wasn’t the best at communicating.

He took his hand off his eyelids and gestured it out, his hand clearly showing his aggravation, “just, don’t do that stuff with me anymore, alright? Just be normal.”

She nodded again, understanding him a bit more, “ok Uchiha-Sa…I mean...Sasuke-Kun. I’m sorry”, she bowed out of habit, then quickly stopped once she realized she was doing it.

“How embarrassing, I-I’m sorry, Sasuke-kun, it’s just a habit”, she blushed from embarrassment and humiliation from the fact that she just did everything he told her not to in one setting.

Sasuke was aggravated, but his expression changed after seeing her whole ordeal.

“Hm”, he said, and shook his head. He didn’t look upset though, Hinata noticed. In fact, he looked like he had a tiny hint of a grin on that stone like face of his.

“Let’s go, Hinata.” Sasuke said as he opened the door to the car and got out, Hinata followed suit.

She thought inwardly to herself as she realized this was the first time he’d said her name. The thought of this new respect she had seen from him, even if it was slight, was something that made her feel a little more welcome in this strange, new town.

He opened the door to the apartment complex and held the door open from the inside for her. “I have to remind Naruto to make you a key.” He said thoughtfully.

“It’s ok, I’m in no hurry for one. As long as one of you are here, I should be fine for now.” She said lightheartedly.

They walked up the flight of stairs and Sasuke opened the door to their apartment, letting her walk in first.

“Thank you, Sasuke-kun”, his gesture put a small smile on her face, a gentleman like gesture, something he hadn’t done once for her since she’d arrived.

Hinata stood by the door and took off her shoes, placing them neatly down. She walked over to the kitchen and looked in the fridge.

Sasuke sat on the couch and took of his shoes, also getting up to put his shoes neatly by the door.

“Sasuke-kun”, she called out to him.

“Hm?” He said, heading to his room to change.

“Would you like me to make chicken with rice or chicken with noodles?” She didn’t look at him, she was busy observing the contents in the cabinets.

Sasuke observed her while she looked through the cans and ramen packets they had. He couldn’t help but be inwardly grateful for her. Just one day in the apartment and she was already making two home cooked meals. Something Naruto and himself were only ever able to get from eating at a restaurant, and that was rare.

“It doesn’t matter. Whatever you decide to make I’ll eat.” Sasuke felt that was probably the most open he had been with her so far.

Hinata glanced over at him and they made eye contact, she grinned, “ok, that’s nice to know, Sasuke-kun”

They both looked away around the same time, quickly going back to what they were doing. Both trying not to dwell on the fact that they had connected a little.

Yet also, both secretly dwelling on the fact that they had connected a little.

...

Sasuke woke up a little early the next morning, walking in to the sight of Hinata cooking again.

“Goodmorning, Sasuke-kun”, she smiled politely, and Sasuke replied, “morning.”

He went to go use the restroom, he heard Naruto open the door to his room and make his presence known.

“Goodmorning, Hinata-Chan! Making breakfast again?! Dang, you’re awesome!”

Although Sasuke had the bathroom door closed, he could hear the drool coming out of Naruto’s mouth.

She giggled, “n-no, it’s nothing, really. Goodmorning, Naruto-kun”

It was obvious. Too obvious. Her crush on his best friend was practically seeping out of her pores.

But Sasuke didn’t care. Anyway, why would he? He was just stating observations.

He flushed the toilet and washed his hands, drying them with a new blue towel he knew she had put there.

When he left the bathroom and closed the door, he saw there was a breakfast plate waiting for him.

Naruto was already scarfing down his second plate, and Hinata gestured for Sasuke to sit with them.

He ate, grateful for another home cooked meal. He could concur that he had eaten the best he had in these few days at the apartment then he had the whole time he’d lived here.

“Teme, could you give us a ride to work again? My cars still acting up” Naruto asked him, after he had finished his meal and sat there like a stuffed turkey.

“Yea.” He said.

“Thank you, Sasuke-kun” Hinata grinned.

Sasuke nodded.

...

Sasuke went to aisle seven to stock some canned green beans, he glanced over to see how the front was doing, not because he was curious, mostly because he was bored.

His eyes landed on Naruto and Hinata, and Hinata turned at that exact time he had, causing their eyes to lock for a split second.

She smirked and gestured a small wave towards him. He...didn’t really know what to do.

He held up his hand and gestured a “hi” wave, but it was hardly a wave.

She went back to work, focusing all her attention back on Naruto. She started giggling, Sasuke assumed that Naruto had said something funny, a trait he was good at.

Hinata was blushing, and kept glancing at Naruto when he was busy helping customers. Sasuke felt that her crush on Naruto was painstakingly obvious, but Naruto wasn’t paying any attention to her. He had his focus on the pink haired girl behind him.

And, strangely enough, Sakura was sending that same energy back to Naruto. Sasuke secretly observed Sakura glancing up at Hinata every time Naruto made her laugh, which was frequent.

Sasuke went back to get some more boxes to stock.

...

Sasuke got off around 8 p.m., and he walked up to the front to see if Naruto and Hinata were ready to go.

“I’m off. You ready to go?” Sasuke asked them, and Naruto replied, “I get off at 9, but Hinata-Chan’s off. You wanna take her home? Sakura’s gonna give me a ride home”, Naruto said confidently, and Hinata nodded, “ok, I’m sorry Sasuke-kun, I-I just need to go clock out really quick.” She scurried to the back, and him and Naruto did their handshake they had made up years ago.

“I’ll see you tonight, Teme”, Naruto had a huge smile on his face, thinking about his ride home with pink hair, Sasuke assumed.

“See you.” Sasuke said, and started walking to the front door, but he was halted.

“Sasuke-kun”, Sakura said, and he turned.

“Hm?” He said.

“Are you taking Hinata-Chan home again?” She asked, that slight tint of jealously prominent.

“Yea.” He said bluntly.

“Oh”, she said, clearing her throat, “you know I get off in an hour, I can take her home too”

Sasuke considered this offer, her jealously was proving to be beneficial for him.

Hinata walked up to him, she had a beaming smile on her face. “I’m ready, Uchiha-San”

Sasuke looked at her, then nodded slightly, and looked back at Sakura.

“Sakura offered to give you a ride with Naruto if you want”, Sasuke said as he turned to look back at Hinata.

Hinata looked over to Sakura, and Sakura smiled and said, “I get off in an hour though, if you’re okay with waiting”

Hinata looked back at Sasuke, and looked down at the ground, fidgeting with her hands slightly. “Well, I mean…if it’s ok with you Sasuke-kun, I-I would like to go home now. If that’s fine with you”

Sasuke was surprised at this answer, “you sure? You don’t want to go with Naruto?”

Hinata blushed furiously and looked away, making sure to avoid eye contact with them. “N-No, why should that matter if it’s with Naruto-kun? I-I just want to go home because I have things I need to take care of”, she got defensive, and Sasuke realized that he probably shouldn’t have said that.

He quickly changed the subject, “alright, let’s go”, he started walking away, and she swiftly followed behind him, waving to her coworkers as they walked out.

Sasuke started the car, and Hinata hopped in the passenger side. He turned on the heater for her, and she thanked him and took off her coat.

The drive was quiet for the first few minutes, Hinata just stared out the window watching the snow fall, and Sasuke stared at the road.

“I-I wanted to thank you, Sasuke-Kun”, Hinata looked over to him, and Sasuke turned to look as well.

“For what?”

“Well, you know, for giving Naruto and I rides to work. I-I know it must be strange, we just met and we are already roommates and coworkers. You must be tired of seeing my face already”, she laughed lightly, but continued, “but still, I wanted to thank you for dealing with me.” She smiled kindly and sincerely.

Sasuke was quiet, just watching her. He didn’t understand why she was thanking him for that, or how she was able to figure out how he felt about this whole situation. Was she a mind reader? He didn’t know. Anyways, he couldn’t be rude and agree with her, after all he lived with the woman.

“Hm.” He said, and looked back at the road, “don’t mention it.”

Hinata looked out the window again, but quickly turned back to him, “oh! I’ve been meaning to ask you, how long have you and Naruto-kun been working at the grocery store?”

Sasuke thought for a second, then responded, “about as long as we’ve been roommates. So about three years.”

“Wow, that’s nice that you’ve had that job for so long.” She sighed, “you know, this is my first job.”

Sasuke turned to her in surprise, “really?” He would’ve never guessed. Every time he saw her, when she wasn’t googly eyeing Naruto, she was hard at work.

She nodded, “well you see, my family is very strict. They wanted me to stay inside, talk only to the people they wanted me talking to. Me having a job didn’t line up with those views.”

“Hm...so at what age are you free from your parents’ rule?” Sasuke asked her, and Hinata said, “honestly, never. I’m 20, and I’m just barely working for the first time, if that gives you a better perspective.”

Sasuke stared at the road and said nothing. Although, it did give him a better perspective.

They pulled up to the apartment, and she put on her jacket and got ready for the brisk cold that would come when they opened the car doors.

She hurried over to the apartment door, waiting for Sasuke to open it.

“I-It’s so cold!” Hinata said as soon as they entered the complex, blowing on her hands for warmth.

“Hn. Yea, it gets cold here during the winter.” Sasuke stated factually, they walked up the flight of stairs and entered their apartment room.

Hinata took off her shoes and neatly placed them by the door, hanging her coat on the coat rack by the door.

She walked over to the kitchen and opened the fridge, contemplating what to make for dinner.

Sasuke walked to his room to grab a change of clothes, then went to the bathroom to take a shower. When he was done, she had just finished setting his plate down on the table.

“I-I made you some dinner, Sasuke-kun” Hinata grinned slightly, and gestured to the plate.

Sasuke walked over, towel in hand as he was rubbing his hair dry. He was in sweats and a blue t-shirt, comfortable attire.

He sat down on the table, the plate was next to hers so that is where he sat.

Naruto wasn’t home yet, so it was just the two of them eating together. They both sat and ate, mostly in silence, but it was fine.

“Would you like some more, Sasuke-kun?” Hinata asked, getting ready to get up and serve him some more.

He shook his head, and got up to wash his plate in the dishwater she had ready.

“I-It’s ok, I could’ve done that Sasuke-kun” Hinata mentioned, but Sasuke had already finished washing the dishes, which were very few.

“Thank you.” Sasuke said, as he walked back to his room.

Hinata had heard his voice, but she hadn’t been paying attention to what he was saying, she was busy preparing Naruto a plate for when he came home and also putting the leftovers away. “I-I’m sorry, what did you say?” Hinata looked over to him.

“Thank you for dinner.” He repeated, looking back at her.

She was taken aback by this. After all, it was the first time he’d thanked her for anything.

She blushed a pinkish hue, and nodded slightly, “sure, a-anytime, Sasuke-kun”


	4. a drunken fool and an innocent liar

Hinata was up early making some breakfast for her two roommates.

“Hey.”

She jumped slightly in surprise from the sudden noise, only to realize it was coming from Sasuke.

“Goodmorning, Sasuke-kun.” She responded back and grinned, stirring the pot of oatmeal.

He went to the bathroom and came out shortly after.

She filled two bowls with oatmeal and set them down with two spoons.

He went to sit down with her, both eating in silence for a moment, just savoring the oatmeal.

“What time do you go in?” Sasuke asked, and Hinata looked up at him curiously.

She had not been paying attention, so she didn’t understand the question, “I-I’m sorry, what was that?” She asked politely, and Sasuke said, “what time do you go in to work today? So I know what time I have to leave.” He asked this because he was still giving Naruto and her rides to work, and, luckily, their work times were close together. Only sometimes would Sasuke be earlier than usual for the other two to be at work on time.

“Oh, a-actually, I don’t have to work today Sasuke-kun. I have the day off today”, she responded politely.

“Hn. Alright.” He said, finishing the last of his oatmeal. He got up from his chair and washed his bowl and spoon.

Hinata insisted, “Sasuke-Kun, you could’ve left it, I-I have all day to clean them”, she joked lightly, and Sasuke already finished.

“Enjoy your day off.” Sasuke said without looking back at her, he walked to his room to get ready for work.

“Thank you, I-I will”, she glanced over to him, seeing the back of his head as he closed the door to his room.

She was going to wait for Naruto to wake up to give him some oatmeal, but he was taking too long so she just left the pot on the stove for him. For now, she wanted to focus on her goal for the day. And, that goal was to sort out the third bedroom since she was starting to grow tired of sleeping on the couch and wanted to sleep on a real bed.

She went into the back room and observed her situation. Boxes and boxes were stacked on top of each other, papers and clothes all strewn about the floor. She sighed heavily, boy, did she have a long day ahead of her.

She heard Naruto’s room door open, and she heard him yawn loudly, she blushed slightly, nervous but excited to see him. She opened the door to her soon-to-be room, and waved, “Goodmorning, Naruto-kun”, she said shyly, and Naruto waved back with a big grin on his face.

“Morning, Hinata-Chan. I smell something good, whaddya make for breakfast?” Naruto complimented.

Hinata blushed, “t-thank you, Naruto-kun. It’s just oatmeal, I’ll go get you a bowl”

Naruto licked his lips, looking off in the distance, “heck yea! I can’t remember the last time I had oatmeal”

She giggled at his silliness and went to get him a bowl and sit down to talk with him.

Naruto quickly went through one bowl, and started on his second, only having enough time in between to say, “this is so good, Hinata-Chan!”

And Hinata, blushing, telling him thank you.

Naruto sat back in his chair, rubbing his belly, and feeling content. He glanced at the clock, and quickly jumped up.

“Damn! I didn’t know it was this late! I gotta get ready for work!” He quickly hurried to his room to get changed, and Hinata stood up and finished up the dishes, and then promptly wiping down the table and counter tops.

Naruto went to go knock on Sasuke’s door, but he was already coming out of the room, ready for work.

Naruto was still slipping on his last shoe, he looked over at Hinata, “you’re not going to work, Hinata-Chan?” He asked while he was still combing his fingers through his hair to give it the look of a tamed mess.

“No, I have the day off today” Hinata smiled, and Naruto nodded, and grinned back, “that’s awesome, well, have fun! We’ll see ya later!” Naruto waved, and Sasuke didn’t say anything, just a slight nod in her direction.

“See you later, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun” Hinata waved to them, and with that they closed the door behind them.

Hinata finished cleaning up in the kitchen, and then headed to the room to start cleaning it up for her to start moving in.

...

Hinata was already a few hours in to cleaning the room, and she was now taking a much-needed lunch break.

She had already organized a few boxes that had Naruto’s and Sasuke’s names on them, she just started putting them in separate piles so when they got home the two of them could simply take the boxes to their rooms. She was trying to make it easy for them.

However, there were a few boxes that were opened, or with no names, but she didn’t go through them. Those boxes, she put in their own pile so the two of them could sort through it and figure out which one was theirs.

She finished her lunch, which was just a quick sandwich, and continued with her cleaning ordeal, trying to finish everything by the end of the day. From the sheer mass and quantity of objects in the room, though, she doubted that she would be done by today, but she would most definitely try.

...

Sasuke clocked out around 8 pm, ready to go home and rest. He asked Naruto if he was coming, but Naruto was able to hitch another ride with Sakura.

He parked in the driveway, opened the apartment complex door, walked up the apartment stairs, and opened their door.

He didn’t bother taking off his shoes, because he saw something that he needed brought to his attention, immediately.

Hinata was stacking boxes and hardly noticed his presence in the doorway.

“Hey” Sasuke said, grabbing her attention.

“Hello Sasuke-kun, you startled me, I-I didn’t even realize you were there” Hinata grinned slightly, although his expression was vastly different from hers.

“What’re doing?” He asked, anger prominent in his voice.

Hinata paused, observing his demeanor before she responded, pondering why he was upset.

“I-I’m just organizing yours and Naruto-Kun’s things, so I can move into the room, that’s all”, she said, a hint of defensiveness in her tone.

Sasuke walked into the room and observed some of the boxes, sending a sharp look in her direction.

“These boxes look like they’ve been opened”, he continued to send a piercing gaze in her direction.

Hinata was puzzled, “that’s strange, I-I wonder why”, she didn’t understand where he was getting at.

“Well, you were the one who was moving them.” Sasuke said, yet Hinata still didn’t understand.

“W-What are you trying to say…?” She asked, frowning in confusion.

“You’ve been going through these boxes.” Sasuke sharply accused her. He could not have her going through his things. There were personal family pictures, things he didn’t want anyone seeing except himself. The thought of her snooping through his personal belongings infuriated him.

Hinata blinked, taken aback by his statement. “W-What…w-why would you think…no, of course not. I-I was just sorting the boxes out”

“You’re a liar.” Sasuke gritted his teeth, and Hinata couldn’t help but be defensive.

“I-I’m not, Sasuke-kun!” She said, pleading for him to listen.

“You are.” Sasuke spoke in a condescending tone.

Hinata furrowed her brows, he saw the look in her eyes. For the first time, it seemed he had pissed her off.

“You know what...”, she said, looking down at the floor, contemplating if she should say what she was going to say. She went ahead and said it.

“I think you’re an arrogant asshole”, she yelled, pointing a finger at him. “You have no right, accusing me of being a liar!”

Sasuke crossed his arms, then he responded, “I think you’re nothing but a spoiled brat run away from home.”

He raised his brow, “and I could care less what you think of me. At least I don’t stick my head in places it doesn’t belong.”

Hinata grimaced, and clenched her fists, “you’re so rude! How dare you accuse me of things I’ve never done! I don’t like you. I didn’t like you from the start.” She exhaled loudly, and he scoffed at her remark.

“Hn. That makes two of us.” Sasuke said in that condescending tone that was driving her mad.

“I-I pay for this room, so I’ll ask you nicely” Hinata said, her tone of voice filled with fury. “Please get out of my room, and take your boxes with you”, she pointed to the door, and Sasuke sent her a sharp look.

“Whatever.” He left the apartment, slamming the front door behind him.

He walked briskly into the night, hands in his pockets. It was snowing. He didn’t care, though, he was too heated to care. He let his feet take him to the bar down the street, to drown out that stupid girl from his mind.

...

Naruto came home around 9 pm, “I’m home!” He loudly announced, but no one answered. He frowned in curiosity, he assumed Hinata would respond for sure, but he assumed wrong.

He saw a light on in the third room, and he kicked off his shoes and went to go check.

He peeped in the room, seeing Hinata sitting on the floor, combing a hand through her hair.

“Hey” Naruto said, walking into the room and sitting down next to her.

She looked up and watched him sit down next to her. “O-Oh, hey Naruto-kun...” Hinata said absentmindedly.

“You ok, Hinata-Chan?” Naruto said, observing her sulking and dropped down shoulders.

“Well...no, not really”, she looked to the floor, “Sasuke-kun and I got into a huge fight before you came”

Naruto laughed lightly, “ah, I’m sure it wasn’t that bad, Sasuke and I have had plenty of fights. What happened?”

“Well, when he got home, he came to the room and accused me of going through your guys’ stuff, but I-I wasn’t Naruto-kun” Hinata looked up at him, hoping he’d believe her. It seemed he did.

Naruto shook his head, “what happened next?”

“He said I was a liar, and I called him an arrogant asshole...then he said I was a spoiled brat runaway. Then I told him I didn’t like him and to get out of my room. A-And he just left, slamming the door behind him.”

Naruto nodded his head slowly, “oh, yea, that’s pretty bad…” After he said this, she shook her head in defeat.

“I-I feel so bad, Naruto-kun...I didn’t mean to say those things to him...” Hinata was teary eyed, obviously feeling guilty.

Naruto patted her on the back, trying his best to comfort her. “It’s ok, Hinata-Chan. Sasuke just needs some time to cool down. He will get over it.” Suddenly, his phone started ringing.

He pulled his cell phone out of his front pocket and answered it.

“Hey, what’s up Sakura-Chan?” Naruto said, and he fell silent as he listened to the voice on the other line. His facial expression lit up, and he said, “heck yea! I’d love to. Just let me change outta my uniform. What time will you be here?”

Naruto nodded, and said, “ok, I’ll be ready, see you then, bye”, he hung up, and gleefully got up. He realized Hinata was still there, but what he didn’t realize is that she had been observing his facial expressions the whole time. “I’m sorry Hinata-Chan, I didn’t mean to interrupt.” He rubbed the back of his head, and Hinata shook her head, “i-it’s ok, no worries”

“Sakura-Chan invited me to the movies tonight, I know you’re not feeling so good about what happened with you and Sasuke earlier, but would you like to come too? Maybe it’ll cheer you up” Naruto extended the invitation to her, but she wasn’t as elated as he was. In fact, she was quite the opposite. Seeing him light up from the thought of going with Sakura to the movies, seeing how happy it had made him, it should have made her happy for him as well. However, she felt like she had been stabbed with a hot knife through her chest.

She smiled to hide the pain, and shook her head, “no thank you, I-I want to try and finish cleaning up my room. Thank you for the offer though, Naruto-kun”

Naruto nodded, he smiled as well, “sure, no problem.” He started walking out of the room, and Hinata held her head low, realizing that he did not hold the same feelings she held for him.

“Hey, Hinata-Chan”

She turned to look at him, “yes, Naruto-kun?”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it, about Sasuke, ya know? It’ll be ok”, he grinned, and rubbed the back of his head.

The way he smiled, his positive outlook on life, the way he rubbed his head, even the way he stood, she couldn’t help but admire every inch of him. She smiled lightly, nodding her head in agreement, “thank you, Naruto-kun”

...

_Sasuke Uchiha slammed another shot, there were five empty shot glasses on the bar table where he sat._

..

After the third shot, he gained enough liquid courage to start talking to some random guy sitting next to him.

“What’re you trying to forget?” The man sitting next to him had asked, “I thought I’d ask you what was wrong.” The man pointed to his three empty shot glasses, “I only drink like that if I’m trying to forget something.”

Sasuke spun the shot glass between his thumb and pointer finger. “My roommate.” He said, voice harsh from the liquor. He cleared his throat slightly, “she’s an idiot.”

“Ah.” The man said, sipping on his beer.

Sasuke glanced over at the man, he was elderly, probably in his 50s.

“What about you?” Sasuke asked, and the man shook his head, “oh, no, I’m not trying to forget anything. I’m just waiting for my wife to get off work. She’s my ride home.”

Sasuke nodded and lifted his hand up to the bartender to get him another drink.

“So, what did your roommate do that makes her such an idiot?” The man took another sip of his beer.

Sasuke sighed, “she’s...just an idiot. I accused her of going through my things.”

“Uh huh”, the man nodded his head, “did she admit to going through your things?”

“She says she didn’t do it. I told her she was a liar.”

“Oh”, the man sipped his beer again. “What did she say to you? You know, after you called her a liar?”

“She called me an arrogant asshole. I don’t care what she thinks of me, though.” Sasuke grabbed the other shot glass the bartender had given him, and swiftly downed it. He made a slight face from the bitter taste, but it tasted better after the fourth one.

“I see. So, what’s bothering you then?” The man asked.

“What bothers me the most about her is...just that. Her.” Sasuke looked over at the man, who was listening to his story intently.

“Is she hard to live with? I’ve had plenty of roommates that I had trouble living with.”

Sasuke nodded his head, “I guess you can say that.”

“Is she lazy? Doesn’t pay her rent? Doesn’t help out around the house?”

Sasuke thought for a moment before answering, “no, it’s not that…she helps around the house. In fact, maybe too much.”

The man raised a brow, “what do you mean?”

“She cooks, cleans, pays rent on time...but we were fine without her before”

Sasuke pictured the woman in his mind, her smile, driving her home from work. The light always seemed to dance off her silhouette. He quickly shook his head, erasing her image out of his mind.

“Haha, ok then”, the man took another swig of his beer.

“What’s so funny?” Sasuke looked over at him, head rocking back and forth a bit.

“It’s just that she doesn’t sound so bad. Maybe it’s something else you don’t like about her”, the man rubbed his chin, “is she ugly? Is that it?”

Sasuke imagined Hinata in his mind, her long flowing bluish black hair, her soft, pale eyes, her face...

“...no, she’s not.” Sasuke lifted his glass up to gesture to the bartender for another shot of sake.

“Hm, then I’m not sure. I can’t figure out what’s so bad about her.”

Sasuke Uchiha slammed another shot, there were five empty shot glasses on the bar table where he sat.

“Do you think that...never mind.” The man was down to the end of his beer.

“What?” Sasuke looked over at him, the man was starting to look slightly fuzzy.

“Did it ever occur to you that maybe you like this girl?” The man looked curiously at him.

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows, “why would I like her?”

The man shrugged, “I don’t know. It sounds like you are confused about how you feel. Think about it, you never know.”

A car pulled up to the bar, shining its lights through the bar window.

The man chugged the last of his beer, put some money on the bill for his drink, and patted Sasuke on the back.

“Nice talking to you, young man. I hope you’re able to figure out whatever it is that’s bothering you.”

Sasuke nodded slightly, putting his hand up to signify a wave. “Later.”

After the man left, Sasuke looked at the glasses in front of him.

Damn, what _was_ he trying to forget?

...

Sasuke staggered home from the bar, although there was an inch of snow on the ground, he didn’t care. He was too drunk to care.

Anyways, the apartment was only a few blocks away.

Suddenly, his vision started transitioning from fuzzy to pitch black. He was able to catch little glimpses of him walking home, and after that, it was dark.

...

Hinata heard the door swing open then shut. She knew it couldn’t have been Naruto because he had left to the movies roughly an hour ago. She continued to clean up the room, hoping Sasuke would come to the room so she could apologize to him.

He staggered over to the room doorway, leaning his arm and weight on the side.

Hinata observed him, noticing he was acting strangely. “Sasuke-kun, I’m so sorry about what I said earlier, I-I didn’t mean any of it...”

He didn’t respond to her, though. Instead, he started walking over to her.

She didn’t say anything at first. She just watched him, until he got closer, and closer.

She took a step back, feeling her heart pounding through her chest like a drum. She put her palms back, and felt a wall behind her. She glanced behind her shoulder, thinking inwardly just how cornered she was. She was nervous to look back at him, afraid he would be too close, “u-uhm...S-Sasuke-ku-”, she gasped as he drew so close his nose almost touched hers.

She picked up her hands and put them in front of her, her palms facing him as if to push him off her, an automatic defense mechanism.

He grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the wall, she could have kicked her way out, but she felt paralyzed in place.

She took a breath in and held it, she had nowhere to look but directly in his eyes.

“...you...” Sasuke slowly muttered, Hinata could smell the alcohol prominently from his breath.

“...so you really don’t like me, huh?”

She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t speak. Her heart was racing so fast in her chest it was all she could hear in the preceding silence.

She opened her mouth slightly, trying to speak, but she felt as if she couldn’t even let her breath out. All she could do was wait and wonder what he was going to do next.

For his next move, he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.

Hinata…didn’t expect this. She felt her knees buckle from the warmth of his lips. She felt her face grow hot, she knew she could push him off, but...

Sasuke withdrew, putting his forehead on hers, Hinata opened her eyes and observed him, he didn’t look so good.

“S-Sasuke-kun, I-I think you might have had too much to drink...” Hinata said after a minute or two, after she regained herself.

Sasuke didn’t say anything, just rested his forehead on hers, eyes closed.

“Here, I’ll walk you to your bed.” Hinata put his arm around her shoulders, and slowly walked him down the hallway to his room.

She opened the door to his room and laid him down on his bed. She tried not to prolong her stay in his room, she didn’t want to be nosy.

She was starting to walk out, then, suddenly, Sasuke reached out and grabbed her wrist.

Hinata blushed furiously, looking nervously at him, yet he looked like he was fast asleep. It seemed like he was trying to drag her in to bed with him, but he had automatically crashed out once his head hit the pillow. His grip loosened, and she quickly left the room, too embarrassed to look back at him.

She shut Sasuke’s door behind her, rubbing her forehead. She felt dizzy, lightheaded, in a trance. She sat down on the couch, reminiscing on their strange encounter just moments ago.

She laid on the couch, gazing up at the ceiling of the living room, the back of her hand over her bangs. She could’ve pushed him off her, she could’ve stopped him.

But...she didn’t.

Why didn’t she?

She blushed, thinking back on how she felt during the kiss.

She didn’t stop it because she...she...

She covered her face, blushing cherry red.

Because she liked it, that’s why.

But it was wrong. It’s wrong to have enjoyed it. It’s wrong because she likes Naruto, that’s her crush. That’s who she should be enjoying a kiss from, not from his best friend. But she couldn’t deny the fact that she enjoyed her kiss with Sasuke.

She contemplated these feelings, tossing, and turning. She did this for about ten minutes, then she dozed off, just like the man in the bedroom.

...

Naruto opened the door to the apartment around 11 pm, looking around to see if anyone was awake. He noticed that Sasuke was in his room, and Hinata was asleep on the couch. He tip-toed to his room, trying not to wake her.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah, Sasuke! Pulling the moves on Hinata! Things getting a little hot up in here ;) lol guess we know what Sasuke was trying to hide. 
> 
> Stay tuned, next chapter coming soon!


	5. Come on in

Hinata woke up early, earlier then both of them. She rubbed her eyes and yawned, feeling like her sleep was inadequate, the reason being from the strange night before. 

She went to the bathroom to get ready for work, which consisted of using the toilet, taking a shower, brushing her teeth, and changing into her uniform and brushing her hair. This usually took about twenty minutes. 

When she was finished with her morning ritual, she opened the bathroom door, and, to her surprise, she saw Sasuke standing there. 

He had his hand covering one eye, and didn’t even really look at her. She assumed he must be hung over, since it seemed he had a headache. He moved passed her in the doorway, and she made way for him. 

Hinata couldn’t help but blush and look away, making no eye contact with him either. Both didn’t say a single word to one another. Which was strange, because he was so close to her in the doorway that she could smell his musk. She blushed even more as she quickly walked away, it reminded her of how close they were yesterday. 

She tried to ignore those thoughts, and went to go start cooking some breakfast. She heard the bathroom door open, and she turned slightly to see if he was going to come up and talk to her. 

He didn’t do that, instead, he walked straight to his room, neither looking nor speaking a word to her. 

She wouldn’t say it aloud, but on her face, there was disappointment. She was hoping to talk to him. Later, she hoped. 

Naruto came out of his room, sniffing the air, “morning, Hinata-Chan! Smells good!” 

Hinata nodded, blushing slightly, “good morning, Naruto-kun. I-It’s almost ready”, she was just making some scrambled eggs and bacon, it was a quick breakfast since she was running a little behind this morning. 

“Awesome! Lemme just get ready real quick and we’ll eat!” Naruto grinned, and Hinata blushed more, “ok, s-sounds great”, she said, grinning as well. 

A few minutes later, Naruto came out and sat with her on the kitchen table, Hinata had two plates of food ready for them. She didn’t make one for Sasuke, because he hadn’t come out of his room.

Naruto sat down next to her, and ate ravenously, which Hinata giggled at. “You must be hungry, Naruto-Kun”, she served him some more, being mindful to save some for Sasuke. 

“What can I say, you’re cooking is the bomb!” Naruto said in between bites, and Hinata’s cheeks turned red, “t-thank you, Naruto-kun” 

“Thank you, for making us good food” Naruto grinned, and looked at the clock. “Oh snap! What time you go to work today, Hinata-Chan?” 

Hinata looked at the clock, it was 10:30. “I-I go to work at 11. What about you?” She was worried about who would be giving her a ride to work, since Sasuke still hadn’t come out of his room.

Naruto nodded, “me too. Ya know, I got my car running. If you want, I can give you a ride to work.” 

Hinata beamed, so thankful he had offered, since she was unsure of what to do. “Yes, thank you, Naruto-kun!” 

...

Naruto and Hinata hopped into his white car, and Naruto turned it on, it started making a turning noise, and almost sounded like it wouldn’t turn on. 

“Come on, work!” Naruto slammed his hand on the dash board, and the car kicked into gear. 

Naruto raised his hand triumphantly, “woohoo!” He shouted, and Hinata laughed, and clapped her hands to match his energy. 

The drive was quiet for a few minutes, Hinata’s mind had drifted off to the night before. She was trying to figure out why Sasuke did what he did. In fact, she was trying to figure out her whole time knowing Sasuke Uchiha. 

“So, is everything ok with you and Sasuke-Teme now?” Naruto asked her, he looked over at her, “I mean, he didn’t come out of his room, so I was thinking maybe he’s still upset. Teme and I have got into some bad arguments before, and he usually stays in his room for a day or two. But after that he’ll be back to normal.” Naruto grinned reassuringly to her.

Hinata nodded in response to him, then looked out the car window, then looked back at Naruto, “N-Naruto-Kun, can I ask you something?” 

“Sure. What’s up?” 

“I-I was wondering...why is Sasuke-kun...so difficult to understand?” Hinata asked, “sometimes he does things that I-I just...or he just says things that make it difficult to understand him.” She blushed a bit, but turned so Naruto didn’t see her.

Naruto scratched his head, “haha, yeah, a lot of people say that about Sasuke-Teme. But once you get know him, after awhile, he gets pretty easy to understand, ya know?” 

“Was there ever a time that..it was hard for you to understand him?” Hinata asked, and Naruto nodded, “are you kidding me?! Heck yeah! When I first met him, all we ever did was bump heads” Naruto laughed, thinking back on the good times. “But after living with him for so long, we kinda know what to do to piss each other off, so we try not to piss each other off too much. Haha” 

Hinata laughed too, Naruto’s laugh was so warming. A vastly different feeling then the one Sasuke gave her. Sasuke made her feel...ah. It was hard to pinpoint. She shook her head, she shouldn’t be debating this topic. She was  supposed to like Naruto! That was her first crush, and she shouldn’t be going around liking someone else at the same time! 

She sighed, calming her mind, trying to ask the questions she needed answered without fighting with her emotions over it. 

“Sasuke’s a good person, ya know?” 

Hinata glanced over at Naruto, “I-I’m sorry?” She hadn’t been paying close attention to what he was saying, she was stuck in her head momentarily. 

“Sasuke-Teme, he’s not a bad person. Even if sometimes he acts like a bad guy, inside he’s a really good guy. I know you two aren’t on good terms right now, but, sooner or later, you two will get along. He just needs some time to warm up to you. It’s hard for him to express himself, he keeps everything all bottled up.” Naruto looked over at Hinata, and Hinata was in awe, Naruto had basically answered her burning questions, without even knowing it. 

“Don’t ever tell him I told you that.” Naruto laughed nervously, “he’d kill me if he knew I told you that.” 

Hinata nodded, “I-I promise, I’ll never tell” 

Naruto let out a sigh, “whoo. That’s a relief.” 

The two of them laughed, pulling into the grocery store parking lot. 

They both walked in to the store, clocked in, and got to work. Hinata every now and then glancing back at Naruto, then when she was helping customers, thinking about Sasuke. 

...

Hinata looked at the clock, it was almost noon. She wondered if Sasuke had the day off today. As soon as she thought this, she heard the grocery store doors open. And the person who came in through them was none other then Sasuke Uchiha.

She looked away quickly, trying to act like she was busy. She wondered if he would come up to her. She noticed he walked near her cash register, and she turned to wave at him.Instead, he kept walking, acknowledging only Naruto at the cash register, but no one else. 

Hinata sighed, feeling ignored was something she didn’t enjoy. 

...

Hinata looked at the clock, it was 7 pm. Her shift was over. She looked over at Naruto, and asked him, “Naruto-kun, what time do you get off?” 

He looked at the clock, “not until 8. Why? You off already?” 

Hinata nodded, “y-yes” 

“I’m sorry, Hinata-Chan” Naruto responded sympathetically, but Hinata shook her head, “i-it’s ok, I can wait.” She didn’t really want to wait, she had to finish cleaning the room, she was so close to being done. 

“I’m getting off right now, if you want, I can take you home” Sakura offered, her purse in hand, she was ready to walk out the door but had overheard their conversation. 

Hinata looked over at the pink haired woman, “are you sure?” She asked, and Sakura nodded, “of course!” She beamed a smile at the Hyuga. 

Hinata blushed slightly, and nodded her head, “thank you so much, Sakura-Chan” 

...

The two ladies walked to Sakura’s car, it was a blue Prius. “I-I like your car, Sakura-Chan”, Hinata commented, and Sakura smiled, “thank you!” 

“Hinata-Chan! Sakura-Chan! WWWAAIT!!” Naruto went running after them, they both turned, slightly startled. 

“Here, I’ve been meaning to give this to you, but I just keep forgetting”, Naruto said in between breaths, and handed Hinata two keys, one for the apartment complex entrance,and one for their apartment room. 

“Oh, thank you, Naruto-Kun” Hinata blushed, and Sakura noticed this.

Sure, Hinata blushed a lot. But, not as much as she did when she was around Naruto. It was too obvious, even for Sakura, a girl that barely knew her. 

“Ok, see you at home, bye Hinata-Chan! Bye Sakura-Chan!” Naruto waved to them as he ran back inside to work, and Sakura yelled at him, “get back to work, dummy!” 

The two of them hopped in the car, driving out of the parking lot. 

“So, how do you like working at the store so far?” Sakura asked Hinata, who had been busy observing the road. 

“Oh, I-I like it so far”, Hinata grinned and nodded. 

“How was it like? You know, getting trained by Naruto? Naruto can be a pain sometimes, but he’s pretty easy to get along with”, Sakura asked, and Hinata looked away, trying to hide her blush, but to no avail. 

“He taught me well, I think. I-I agree, he’s easy to get along with” 

Sakura raised a brow as she asked another question, “how do you like living with Naruto and Sasuke?” 

Hinata noticed Sakura’s extra emphasis when she mentioned Sasuke’s name. Hinata nodded, and replied, “it’s, uhm, fine, I-I suppose.” She didn’t bring up the fiasco she had with Sasuke the night before. She wasn’t close enough to Sakura to confide in her with secrets.

“You’re a lucky woman”, Sakura sighed sadly, daydreaming about something, “I would kill to be in your shoes.” 

Hinata asked her curiously, “why’s that?” Hinata was thinking, that maybe Sakura had a crush on Naruto. “I-Is it because I live with Naruto-kun?” Hinata blurted this out loud, maybe she shouldn’t have, but it just came out impulsively.

Sakura shook her head, “oh, no, not him.” She blushed slightly, daydreaming again, “because you live with  _him_ ” she emphasized, and Hinata knew.

“Oh, you mean, Sasuke-kun”, Hinata was slow to say this, realizing what Sakura had been daydreaming about. 

Sakura nodded, “yea”, and blushed again. 

For a moment, Hinata was silent. She felt a boiling feeling in her gut, she didn’t know how to control it. She felt tension in the air from the thought of Sakura liking Sasuke. Hinata knew it was wrong to feel a little jealous, she was supposed to like Naruto, after all. It was wrong. She subsided her emotions, and beamed a smile at Sakura, “I-I’m just grateful to have a place to stay” Hinata said happily, and Sakura turned to her and nodded. “Right” Sakura smiled back, and then both women looked away, thinking about the men they liked, and also the men they were starting to like. 

.. 

Sakura pulled up to the driveway of the apartment complex, “here you are!” Sakura said happily, looking at the apartment complex door. 

“Sakura-Chan, thank you again for the ride.” 

Sakura nodded, “sure, anytime!” 

“W-Would you like to come in?” Hinata offered, being courteous and friendly as always. 

Sakura thought about it for a moment, and realized it might finally be her chance. Finally, she could talk to Sasuke, hopefully one on one. 

“Sure, I’d love to!” Sakura grinned, trying to hide her excitement.

...

“W-Welcome to our home, Sakura-Chan” Hinata put her hand up, gesturing to the apartment, and Sakura looked around in awe. 

“Looks good, Hinata!” Sakura grinned. 

“Would you like something to eat, Sakura-Chan?” Hinata offered, and Sakura nodded, “yes, that would be great, thank you!” 

Hinata warmed up the dinner she had made last night, handed a plate to Sakura, and served herself as well. There was still enough left over for when Naruto and Sasuke got home. 

They both ate together at the table, Sakura looked over at Hinata, “this is delicious, Hinata!” Sakura commented, sincerely meaning it. It was really good chicken and rice. 

Hinata nodded, “thank you, Sakura-Chan.” She said bashfully, blushing slightly.

Sakura looked around the apartment, and looked back at Hinata, “I’m going to take a guess. I bet you’re the one who keeps this place clean” 

Hinata nodded, laughing lightly, “yes, you’re right. But luckily, Sasuke-kun isn’t too dirty. Naruto-kun is a little dirty, but it’s fine” 

Sakura nodded, swallowing her bite of chicken, “how did this place look before you came?” 

Hinata thought about it for a moment, looking in the air, “hmm...i-it wasn’t too bad, there was some dirty dishes and clothes on the floor, but nothing too bad. I-I think the most difficult thing at first was that there wasn’t much groceries. I-I remember looking through the cabinets, and there was only ramen.” Hinata laughed lightly, thinking back on that time. 

Sakura laughed as well, too, “sounds like Naruto.” 

The two of them laughed, and finished their meal. Hinata went to put the dishes in the sink, and Sakura helped her wash them, which Hinata was grateful for. 

Just as they were half way through washing the dishes, the apartment doorknob jiggled open.

Naruto walked in first, “hey, Hinata-Chan”, he waved, he saw Sakura standing right beside her, and he blushed, a blush Hinata was hurt seeing on him. “Hey, Sakura-Chan! Surprised to see you here” 

Sakura replied, “Hinata invited me in” 

Naruto smiled, “well, that’s awesome!” He kicked off his shoes, and didn’t close the door behind him. 

Sakura frowned, “Naruto! Aren’t you going to close the door?!” 

Naruto said defensively, “Sasuke’s coming!” 

“Sasuke-kun?” Sakura said, hiding her excitement, but Hinata could sense it. 

Sasuke’s shadow appeared in the doorway, and Hinata stared down and looked at the dishes only, too embarrassed to look him in the eyes. 

“H-Hey, Sasuke-kun, how was work?” Sakura said, giddy and almost desperate for his attention. 

But, Sasuke didn’t even look in her direction, in fact, he walked straight, not speaking a single word to Sakura or Hinata. He passed by the kitchen sink, where Hinata was standing, and she waited until his back was towards them to look up at him. His only objective was walking to his room, and he did just that. 

The door closed, leaving the room awkwardly silent.

Naruto laughed off the awkwardness, rubbing the back of his head, “eh, Sasuke-Teme’s probably tired. Something smells good!” Naruto hovered over the stove, “i-it’s just the leftovers from last night, I just warmed them up.” Hinata said shyly, fidgeting with her fingers.

“Yum!” Naruto went to grab himself a plate, and sat and ate at the table. Sakura sat down on the chair next to him, resting her elbows on the table and her chin on the palms of her hands. “You don’t have to eat like a pig, you know”, Sakura said to Naruto, and Naruto said in his defense, “hey! I’m hungry!” 

Hinata sat down with them, just enjoying their company and trying to get her mind off Sasuke. It seemed Sakura was doing the same. 

Naruto continued to eat, and the three of them chatted, just about work, the weather, life. Naruto had the two women laughing most of the time. 

After about an hour or so of them talking, Naruto looked determined to ask something. “Hey, Sakura-Chan, did you wanna go for a walk? It’s a nice night” 

Sakura shivered, “it’s a cold night!” She saw Naruto’s expression, and for the first time, she felt bad for disappointing him.

“Good thing I have a big jacket” Sakura grinned, and Naruto’s expression was of complete joy.

Hinata noticed, and couldn’t help but feel a sting in her heart. He was so happy, she had to be happy for him, too. Even if she had to see his happiness shine on another. 

Naruto and Sakura grabbed their jackets, getting ready to go out into the cold, Naruto looked over at Hinata, who had been gazing down at the floor, lost in thought.

“You wanna come with us, Hinata-Chan?” Naruto asked in a friendly tone, different then the way he had asked Sakura.

Hinata snapped back to reality, looking up at the two of them, “no thank you, I-I still have to finish cleaning up the room. Thank you for offering, though”, she responded with a grin that didn’t reflect how she truly felt about the situation.

“Ok then, see ya” Naruto said as he started walking away, Sakura smiled and waved, “thank you for inviting me inside, Hinata” 

Hinata nodded, “s-sure, of course!” 

Naruto walked towards the door and opened it for Sakura, the two of them waving to Hinata as they left, Hinata waved goodbye as well. 

The front door clicked shut, and Hinata sat on the couch for a moment, in silence. She could hear Sakura’s laugh, slightly muffled, and Naruto talking, until she couldn’t hear them any longer.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath in and out, and got up, getting straight to work on the room, keeping her mind preoccupied of all the thoughts that were swarming through her mind. 

..

It had been roughly an hour since Sakura and Naruto had left, and Hinata had been hard at work on the room. In fact, she was almost done. Just a few little pieces of trash here and there, a few more boxes to organize to their piles, and she was finished.

She was so preoccupied with her work that Hinata didn’t notice the looming presence by the door of the room, until he spoke. 

“Hey.” 

Hinata felt her shoulders go up from shock, she turned to see Sasuke standing there by the entrance of her room. 

He didn’t approach her this time, though, he kept his distance. 

She gulped, then answered carefully, “hello, S-Sasuke-Kun”, she stood up, wary of his presence, and reasonably so, considering their encounter the night before. 

“I...was pretty wasted last night” Sasuke said admittedly, and Hinata slowly nodded in agreement, “yes, I know” she said. 

“I only remember walking home, and, after that, I don’t remember anything...” Sasuke said, not really looking her in the eyes as he spoke, something he hardly ever did when he talked to her. “If I did anything unusual or obscene last night...I’m sorry.” 

Hinata was silent for a brief moment, just absorbing what he was saying to her. She knew he was telling the truth, and after a moment, she nodded, “it’s ok, Sasuke-kun” 

Sasuke looked her in the eyes now, and asked her, “so...what did I do last night?” He asked her, slight curiosity in his voice, he would rather know then not know. 

Hinata blushed, then looked away, moving her feet around nervously. “Uhm...are you s-sure you want to know?” 

Sasuke observed her, damn, did he do something  _that_ bad? 

“...yea” he said, although he was nervous to hear the news, he didn’t show nervousness as much as Hinata did.

“Well...uhm...you...” Hinata now fidgeted with her fingers, a habit she did only when she was extremely nervous, or shy. She took a deep breath in and out, then blurted what she had to say, “you pinned me to the wall and kissed me”, she said this so quickly it was almost inaudible. 

But Sasuke was able to catch what she had said. 

“... _shit_.”  Was all Sasuke could mutter, he put up a hand to cover his face, and when he moved his hand away Hinata noticed a blush. 

Hinata couldn’t help but find his bashfulness utterly adorable. She kept her distance, though, still wary of his presence.

There was a small silence between them, Hinata decided to say what needed to be said.

“I-I’m sorry about the things I said last night, Sasuke-kun. I didn’t mean it” Hinata openly confessed, her apology sincere. 

Sasuke’s blush, now faded away, was replaced by a stoic expression, and his eyes now stared into her eyes. 

Hinata felt when the two of them locked eyes, it was like a whole different universe. One that was compelling, mystical, unsettling, yet with an odd sense of comfort. 

“Don’t worry about it.” Sasuke said, the coolness of his tone was like a summer breeze, “...I shouldn’t have misjudged you.”

Hinata grinned, blushed slightly and nodded, feeling that she had let that burden off her chest, she went back to work on the room. 

She felt her self tense slightly when she saw Sasuke come into the room, but trusted that he was in the right state of mind, which he was. 

He walked up to her, and picked up the box she was about to pick up, and placed it in the correct pile. 

“T-Thank you, Sasuke-kun” Hinata blushed slightly from his kind gesture, and he just continued to stack boxes.

...

With Sasuke helping her, Hinata was able to get the room finished in no time. Although she hadn’t checked the time, it felt like time had flew by. 

“Finally finished!” Hinata breathed out, a big smile on her face from their accomplishment. 

Sasuke nodded, taking a breath as well. “Yea.” He agreed. He nodded his head over to a bed that was in the room, “that spare beds never been used. You can have it.”

Although Sasuke was an emotionless stone, Hinata was not. She was grateful, joyous of the fact that she now had a bed, “thank you Sasuke-kun!” She said, and she practically danced across the carpet. “I can’t wait to sleep on a bed! Ah, the first thing I’ll buy is big pillows, and big, fluffy blankets!” 

She went by the window, looking out into the dark night sky, seeing only the stars and a street lamp out in the distance. 

“And I’ll put some nice curtains here, maybe blue” 

Sasuke was grabbing some of his boxes to move to his room, although he was working, he had his eyes secretly on her. Seeing the happiness in her eyes for something as simple as putting curtains in a room, well, that was a beauty to behold.

He turned quickly when he saw her attention face him, “Sasuke-kun, may I help you carry some of them?” Hinata offered.

“...yea” Sasuke agreed, although he knew he could do it alone.

He grabbed two boxes from the pile, walking ahead of her, and Hinata followed him with only one box in her hands. 

Sasuke shifted the weight of the two boxes to one hand as he swiftly opened the door to his room, he entered first. 

Hinata hesitated for a brief moment, she knew last night she had only entered his room because he was drunk and she wanted to help him out, but she hadn’t looked around or snooped. Although this time he was sober letting her in his room, she still tried not to let her eyes be too curious. 

She walked in, he had put the boxes by the wall next to his window, she placed the box she had there as well. 

They both went back to grab some more boxes from Sasuke’s pile, and continued to do this until there was three left.

Hinata had the last box, however it was opened and cumbersome to carry. She adjusted the box as she was trying to set it down with the rest of the boxes in his room, and as she did that, a book accidentally fell out of the box. She set the box down with the others, and bent down to pick up the book. When the book had landed, though, it had landed open, and Hinata observed the picture on the page. 

It was a picture of a woman, teeming with beauty, holding a baby with spiky black hair. Hinata picked up the photo album, and looked back at Sasuke, who had observed everything.

She handed the photo album to him, and he stared at the picture for awhile. “I-Is that your mother, Sasuke-kun?” Hinata asked as she watched him stare at the picture, he nodded. 

“She’s very beautiful” Hinata smiled softly.

Sasuke flipped through the album to another page, and moved a little closer to her so she could see the picture as well.

Hinata noticed a much younger Sasuke, with a tall boy who looked similar to Sasuke, a man, and the same woman from the other picture. 

“...my mom, dad, older brother” Sasuke said, and Hinata observed the picture, a smile across her face. 

“You have a beautiful family, Sasuke-Kun” Hinata looked up at him, observing his eyes, which looked like they were filled with pain...an emotion she had never seen from him. He hid his emotions deep in those dark eyes of his, she probably would have never seen it if she hadn’t looked at him the moment she did. Because in that instant, his expression was stone cold once more. 

She wondered if he missed them, maybe that was the cause of his pain, she asked, “do they come and visit you often?” 

Sasuke was quiet for a moment, then spoke, “...not my parents...they are dead.”

A thick silence fell between Sasuke and Hinata, before Sasuke finally spoke, “...they were murdered.” 

She couldn’t help but gasp, she wasn’t expecting that at all. “Oh no...that’s terrible...” Hinata said, heavy laden with sorrow. 

They both hung their heads low, Sasuke kept looking at the picture, “yea...some random criminal got them while they were walking on a sidewalk...”, Sasuke knew he didn’t have to tell her the story, but, he...

Hinata was quiet, then she spoke, “I-I’m so sorry”

It was silent, for a moment. 

Hinata took a breath in, then let it out slowly, she closed her eyes and spoke, “my mother, she died during childbirth...”

“...sorry.” Sasuke said, turning slightly to her. 

They locked eyes for a moment, a new connection they never realized they had until now.

Hinata looked back at the picture in his hands, and pointed to his older brother, “a-and your older brother, was he-?” 

“No. He’s still alive. He comes down and visits me, usually during the holidays.” 

“Ah, that’s nice”, Hinata grinned. 

Sasuke set the photo album on top of a box, and went to sit on his bed. He leaned back on the bed, put his feet on the edge and hands behind his head. Although Sasuke had gotten comfortable, Hinata was not. She was nervous, she felt maybe she should leave. 

“What about you?” Sasuke looked over at her. 

Hinata looked puzzled, “w-what do you mean?” 

“What about your family?” He asked.

Hinata sighed, and sat on the edge of his bed. She figured she ought to get a little more comfortable as well, since this was going to be a long story. 

.....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone is celebrating, Happy Fourth of July to you! 
> 
> We found Roman candles, and I can’t wait to fire them off! Lol
> 
> Anyways, see you all soon with the next coming chapter. It will be explaining Hinata’s back story.
> 
> Also...there will be a surprise visit from a relative later in the series! 
> 
> I wonder if you all can guess who it will be? *wink* 
> 
> Haha, be safe everyone! Thank you so much for the support <3


	6. Hinata's story

Hinata lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Tears streamed down her temples; she wiped them with her long-sleeved shirt.

Again, her father had belittled her. And again, she was lying in bed, crying.

Every time she told herself that today would be the last day, the day she would stand up for herself. She told herself this yesterday, today, and most likely, tomorrow.

Knock, knock.

She recognized that knock anywhere. She opened the door, “hey, Hanabi,” she greeted her little sister with a smile filled with sorrow.

“Hey, sister,” Hanabi exhaled these words and looked solemnly at her older sister.

Hinata sat on her bed, and Hanabi sat next to her, “Please come eat dinner” Hanabi pleaded for her sister to come downstairs, and Hinata shook her head. “No, not tonight, Hanabi” Hinata hung her head as she said this.

Hanabi sighed and put an arm around her sister's shoulder, “you don’t even have to talk to father. You can eat, then come right back upstairs. I don’t want my sister to starve.”

Hinata sighed, then looked at Hanabi, “but you know how it is, every time father is lecturing me the whole time we’re eating. I-I lose my appetite.”

“I know, but please, just try.” Hanabi encouraged her, and Hinata looked solemnly at her sister.

Ok, she’ll try, for her little sister.

Hanabi guided her sister off the bed by the hand, and Hinata followed. The two sisters walked downstairs to the dinner table, sitting at the head of the table was her father. There was also a boy, with what looked to be his parents, her cousin, and his father, her Uncle.

Hinata and Hanabi took their seats next to each other. Hiashi introduced his daughters to the boy and his parents.

“This is my daughters; my eldest, Hinata, and my youngest Hanabi.” He gestured to his daughters, and they bowed accordingly.

“You have such lovely daughters, Hiashi,” the woman said, a smile beaming on her face.

“Hinata, Hanabi, this is-” Hiashi continued the introductions now with the guest’s names, but Hinata had stopped listening. She nodded when it seemed it was necessary; however, her mind was someplace else.

Another boy her father felt was perfect marriage material for her, and another boy she would reject.

They started to eat their meal, and Hinata was halfway through her plate.

“Hinata,” Hiashi spoke, a furrow on his brows.

Hinata looked at him, knowing from his tone that he didn’t have anything good to say to her. “Yes, father?” She said warily.

“What were you trying to do this morning?” He said, and in her memory, she had recalled the incident from earlier that day. 

“Father, can’t we wait for this until after dinner?” Hinata asked, and Hiashi spoke coldly, “no. Tell your Uncle what you were trying to do.”

Hinata looked at Neji’s father and saw his equally piercing gaze as her father’s.

She looked down at the table, then mumbled, “I-I was trying to go to the store.”

Hizashi scoffed, then looked at his brother, “how ridiculous.”

Her father frowned and crossed his arms, “you know what would’ve happened if I had let you go, right, Hinata?”

Hinata sighed, “yes, father.”

Her father spoke over her, “they have assassins all over this city, just waiting for you or Hanabi to come out. You realize what would happen to this clan if you were to be taken hostage, or assassinated?”

“Yes, father.”

“What compels you to go against my wishes, Hinata?”

Hizashi shook his head, “it’s no use, brother. She’s a lost cause.”

Hinata felt the tears swelling in her eyes. She was so tired of all this nonsense. Today was the day she’d say something.

“I-I don’t want to disobey you, father...” Hinata looked her father in the eyes and stood up out of her chair, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I-I’m just tired of hiding... I’m tired of these men you bring to the house, and I’m tired of you and this family belittling me and laughing at me for not conforming to your ways. Does it always have to be this way?”

Hanabi looked appalled, everything they’d talked about together was suddenly coming out of her older sister, and she was amazed.

Hiashi stood up out of his seat, walked over to his daughter, and slapped her across the face.

Hinata gasped as she held her cheek, the tears faster than before.

“You disgrace me,” the coldness in Hiashi’s voice cut through her like a knife. Hiashi paid no mind to her as he walked back to his seat and continued to eat his dinner.

Hinata didn’t bother to look back at anyone. She knew where she belonged. She went upstairs and slammed the door to her room shut.

..

Several hours later, the guests had all left, and Hiashi was fast asleep.

Hanabi snuck down the hall to her sister's bedroom and knocked softly on the door, and when she heard no response, she slowly opened the door.

“Shut the door, quickly,” Hinata whispered to her sister, and Hanabi quietly closed the door.

Hanabi observed her sister, who was on her knees, neatly folding clothes into a suitcase. There were also other things on her bed, a sum of money, an advertisement from the newspaper.

Hanabi didn’t want to piece them together, but her brain already figured out what her sister was doing. “What are you doing, Hinata?” Hanabi asked, even though she knew. She just didn’t want to believe it.

Hinata sighed, she looked at her sister, sorrow in her eyes and voice, “I can’t stay here any longer, Hanabi.”

Hanabi sighed as well. She sat on her sister's bed, observing the newspaper advertisement.

It looked like it had been torn off from a more extensive page. Hanabi mentally read it, ‘ROOMMATE WANTED: $250, INCLUDES UTILITIES. IF INTERESTED, CALL NARUTO AT 857-5555’

Hanabi knew, deep down, one day this might happen. Especially with Hinata being 20 years old. She knew that eventually, her older sister would go out on her own.

Hanabi got off the bed and embraced her older sister. Both sisters had tears running down their cheeks.

“You promise to write?” Hanabi asked her, and Hinata nodded, “I-I promise.”

“Will you come back and see us someday?” Hanabi looked to her sister hopefully, and Hinata nodded slowly, “when things are settled down between father and me, I will come back and visit.”

Hanabi smiled and nudged her sister on the shoulder, “maybe you’ll come back with a husband.”

Both chuckled as they sniffled quietly, wiping the moisture from their eyes. Hinata shook her head, “I don’t know, our father will probably kill him for not meeting his expectations.”

Hanabi nodded in agreement as she giggled, “probably.”

The sisters went back to holding each other. They both knew that they wouldn’t be seeing each other for quite some time.

...

Once Hanabi had gone back to her bedroom, Hinata continued packing. It didn’t take her long to finish, and now she was almost done; she just had a few finishing touches.

Hinata took a tan-colored string, the same color as the outside walls of the house. She wrapped the rope around the handle of her backpack.

Hinata waited until her sister was asleep, waited until the guards were distracted in different directions, to make her move.

She quietly opened her window, and put her backpack outside the window, and closed the window, leaving a small crack so she could freely move the string.

The string suspended the backpack, and Hinata lowered it down, all the way to the ground.

Hinata felt the backpack land on the ground. She threw the rest of the string out the wedge of the window.

Great, she got her backpack down. Now, it was her turn.

This time, she would have to wait ten minutes, that’s when the guards who were currently posted went home, and a new set of guards would take their place.

Usually, the guards would talk with one another for a few minutes before taking their posts.

And these were the exact minutes Hinata would have to make her move.

Hinata waited patiently by her window, observing the guards.

Her heart skipped a beat when her peripherals caught a glimpse of a light shining from underneath her door seal.

She turned to the door, feeling her heartbeat through her throat as she watched in utter anxiety.

The shadows of someone’s feet appeared in the light.

She knew it wasn’t her sister. Her sister never got up once she was asleep.

Hinata knew...it was her father.

There was silence. A silence that seemed to last for a lifetime.

Hinata held her breath as she watched the doorknob for any movement.

But there was none.

After a few minutes, the light was turned off, and the sound of footsteps was heard trailing off down the hallway.

A silent sigh escaped Hinata’s lips as she clenched her shaking hands.

She realized she hadn’t been paying any attention to the guards outside, and her eyes quickly jotted, seeing if it was time.

Luckily, she had caught the guards just in time. They walked away from their posts, just as she had expected.

Hinata hurriedly grabbed the rope, anchored it to a wall she had previously adjusted to hold her weight, and placed her repelling hook onto the string.

Hinata opened the window, and while she was suspended on the outside wall, she closed the window, leaving a tiny gap for her rope.

Now, she quietly and swiftly shimmed her way down the wall and on to grassy dirt below.

She did not waste time as she took off her repelling gear, hiding it in a nearby bush, then grabbing her backpack and quickly sneaking through the bushes and out towards civilization.

Many times, she had snuck out just for trips around the city at night.

This time, it wouldn’t be a night around the town.

This time, she would be leaving everything behind.

A tear streamed down her cheek as she thought of Hanabi, but she wiped it away quickly, knowing she had to be clear-minded for the journey ahead.

Hinata stood tall as she walked down the city streets, knowing where she was headed.

...

“Do you have a ticket, miss?” The person at the booth asked her, and she nodded, handing him the piece of thick rectangular paper.

The ticket was promptly stamped, then handed back to her.

“Have a nice trip,” the person reiterated these words with the same amount of enthusiasm as a person who spent hours of repeating the same verse.

“Thank you,” Hinata nodded to him, and she continued forward towards the train station in the back.

“ALL ABOARD!” The employees called as they rang their bells, and Hinata hurried to catch up to the train before departing.

As soon as she was all settled in, sitting in her seat and bag tucked neatly beside her legs, she looked out the window.

The dull, concrete train station would soon be replaced with green landscapes and towering trees.

Hinata sighed as adjusted in her seat, closing her eyes.

She didn’t expect to fall asleep. She wanted to be as alert as possible for the journey.

However, her body had thought otherwise, and before she knew it, she was asleep.

...

The train made a loud hissing noise as it came to a stop, and Hinata was jolted awake by this.

She looked around her, regaining her surroundings while also mentally telling herself how upset she was for letting herself fall asleep.

However, she had no time for self-reflection. Right now, she had to figure out her destination.

Hinata made it to the unfamiliar streets of this new city, and as she looked around, she heard the booming sound of thunder in the distance.

She glanced up at the sky and was met with dark rain clouds hovering above.

Quickly, she covered herself with her hoodie, thankful she had chosen to wear a jacket that day.

For roughly an hour, she walked in the pouring rain, only taking breaks to hide under a roof and use the dimly lit streetlight to look at her paper with the address she had written on it.

She continued to walk through the rain. The sky was pitch black. Hinata knew that it had to be late, but she did not want to check the time because she knew it would discourage her. She would not give up, and she certainly wouldn’t let this slow her down.

Finally, after an hour and a half of walking, she believed she had made it.

An elderly lady opened the door of the building, and Hinata was just in time to catch her.

“Hello ma’ am,” Hinata spoke, and the lady glanced over to her, “hello,” the woman said.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but I’m from out of town, and I don’t know my way around. I was wondering if this is the same address as the one on my paper?” Hinata handed the woman the sheet of paper, and the woman nodded.

“Yes, dear, you’re at the right place. In fact, I know this boy. They live upstairs. They’ve been looking for a roommate, in fact. Are you here for their ad in the paper?”

Hinata nodded, “yes, I am.”

The woman smiled, “oh, good. Come on in, they’re apartment in room 207.”

Hinata bowed respectfully, “thank you so much!” And with that, she hurried inside.

She was in such a hurry running up the stairs to find the apartment number, she had forgotten to take off her rain-soaked hoodie.

Finally, she approached the correct door number, 207.

She knocked and waited several minutes; until the door was opened by a particular person with a mysterious demeanor, who she would later come to know as Sasuke Uchiha.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I hope everyone is faring well during this crazy zoom schooling. I know I’m having difficulty adjusting to my new schedule, haha. Hopefully, I’ll get back into the swing of things by next week. And if I’m back into the swing, then there will definitely be another chapter posted next week. 👍  
> As always, thank you for taking the time out of your life to read my fanfic! It means so much to me.
> 
> Peace  
> Love,  
> CitySushiPlace


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